Dan Evans has packed quite a bit into the past fortnight, and it may or may not be rounded off when he meets Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Australian Open fourth round.

So far, he has reached a first ATP final in Sydney, earned £172,000 prize money, beat two top-10 players, bought his own kit for lack of a sponsor, become British No 2 — having overtaken Kyle Edmund — and been snubbed by Kevin Pietersen for a selfie.

His courageous, highly charged win over the last remaining Australian in the men’s draw, Bernard Tomic, was followed by a remarkable outpouring on a variety of subjects before his latest attempt at a giantkilling act.

Dan Evans' crazy fortnight has included victory over Bernard Tomic and being snubbed by KP

As well as revealing his disgust at the conduct of Tomic’s support box during yesterday’s match, 26-year-old Evans became emotional when paying tribute to his late coach Julien Hoferlin and expressed his shock at Pietersen’s abrupt manner.

Hoferlin, who died of a brain tumour last April aged just 49, did everything he could to harness the tempestuous talent of Evans as a young player but did not live to see him flourish.

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‘Quite a lot of people reminded me about Jules this week. It’s a shame he’s not here,’ said Evans.

‘He did an article at the end (of their working together) in which he wasn’t that complimentary about me. I think he said tennis was an interlude in my life. At the time he was probably right.

‘When you get a bit older, you look back at those sort of things.

‘He sent us a video during the Davis Cup final in Belgium. We weren’t allowed to go see him because he was so sick. It was harrowing. He knew he was going to die.

In the last 12 months the British star has climbed 134 places in the world rankings

‘I was getting myself together before he died. These things sort of hit you, it’s just not an easy thing.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES...

185 - Dan Evans' world ranking this time last year. In the last 12 months he has climbed 134 places to 51st and will break into the top 50 for the first time after the Australian Open.

‘I spent pretty much every day of my life with him — day in and day out. It would have been good if Jules was by the court.’

Then there was the subject of his now famed $20 (£12) tennis and leisure shirts — an emergency purchase last weekend at the local Uniqlo store — one of which has already shrunk in the wash.

‘The one I actually put on the second time had been washed. I thought it was a new one but it had shrunk a bit,’ said Evans, who revealed he has already had the odd sponsorship offer after being dumped by Nike.

‘I think so, but I just want to carry on with the tournament and not get distracted by all that stuff. The company actually sent quite a few (shirts) to the locker room today. That was nice of them. There was no logo, so that was nice of them as well . . . and they were free!’

Would he be signing any? ‘Yeah, but they won’t go for $20 with my autograph on them.’

Evans was snubbed recently by cricket ace Kevin Pietersen when asking for a picture

On a different note Evans, a big cricket fan, recalled his chance meeting with Melbourne Stars batsman Kevin Pietersen one evening earlier this week.

‘He didn’t want me to have my picture taken with him,’ said Evans. ‘I think he was the worse for wear. That was his excuse. Funny, isn’t it, how things work out? He was my favourite cricketer until then, he genuinely was.

'There was some serious rage for about 20 minutes after that happened. It was a bad moment. It was so embarrassing — he didn’t even just say no. He handed me off as well,’ explained Evans, gesticulating with a rugby-style palm.

‘I was nowhere near him. I would understand if he was playing a game or something. I was coming out of the restaurant and he was walking down the hall.

In defeating Tomic Evans picked up his biggest career victory to date

‘I mean, he wasn’t even getting hassled — he was just with three friends, there was no one around him. I’d get it if everyone was asking him.

‘It was amazing but I heard that’s not such a surprise to some people.’

Asked if he now anticipated a ticket request from the former England Test star, Evans said: ‘He’s such a celebrity, he doesn’t need to ask me.’

For all his glorious touch against Tomic, Evans will need to confound expectations again when he faces Frenchman Tsonga.

He must also show the same bravery on the big points as he did against Tomic.

Evans was by far the more resolute in the tiebreaks, which he won 7-2 and 7-3. When faced with two set points against him in the second set he struck out fearlessly with his forehand.

The bookies now have Evans at 12-1 to meet Andy Murray in the semis of the competition

It was a testament to the confidence gleaned from beating five top-50 players in two weeks, and also to his under-rated tennis IQ.

On the prospect of Tsonga, he said: ‘It’s going to be another step up. He’s someone I watched growing up. I watched so many of his matches in the semis and quarters of Grand Slams. It will be different playing against him.’

The bookies have Evans at 12-1 to meet Andy Murray in the semis. It remains a long shot.